Accused man spits at Bourbon judge

A man charged with two counts of attempted murder spit on a district court judge during his arraignment Wednesday in Paris, according to the judge's clerk.

Bass Webb, 30, was in court to face accusations that he tried to run over Deputy Ryan Barkley and pre-trial officer Josh Mason last week as they stood outside the Bourbon County jail. He pleaded not guilty Wednesday.

District Judge Vanessa Dickson, who serves Bourbon, Scott and Woodford counties, recused herself from the case because she knows Barkley and Mason, said Dickson's clerk, Gail Asbury.

Webb then spit in Dickson's face, Asbury said.

"He basically didn't like that she told him she was done with him," said Asbury, who was in the courtroom during the incident.

Deputies escorted Webb out of the courtroom. No charges have been filed in relation to the spitting, Asbury said.

Webb could also face charges in neighboring Harrison County in the death of Bryia Runiewicz, 32, of Cynthiana.

After Webb attempted to run over the two officers Friday, he led police on a chase until his car caught fire. While police arrested Webb, he told officers that he had killed a woman on New Lair Road in Cynthiana, police said. Officers later recovered Runiewicz's body inside a single-family residence at 1023 New Lair Road.

No charges have been filed against Webb in Harrison County, Harrison County Clerk Kathy Kearns said.